Christmas Hot Air Balloon: 14 Dreamy DIY Ideas Everyone Is Making This Season
A Christmas hot air balloon floating over the tree feels like something from a storybook, and this year everyone wants one. All you need is a party balloon, some twine, glue and a tiny basket, and you end up with a decoration that looks like it drifted in from the North Pole. One Facebook Reel of this craft, posted on October 7, has passed 191,000 reactions and more than 16,000 shares, and new versions keep popping up every week of October 2026. Those share numbers tell the real story: people are saving it so they can make it. Below you will find 14 versions, from the classic Santa ride to a glowing gold globe, a gingerbread balloon and an easy paper cup craft for kids. Pick your favorite, clear the kitchen table and let’s start building..
Classic Christmas Hot Air Balloon With Santa in a Basket
This is the version that started the craze, and it is easier than it looks. You wrap a blown up party balloon in glue soaked jute twine, let it dry hard, then pop the balloon and pull it out. What is left is a light, hollow globe that holds its shape. Hang a small woven basket below with four strands of twine, tuck a little plush Santa inside and add a few red berries and pine sprigs. It looks like Santa is floating off on his own Christmas hot air balloon. Set it on a coffee table or hang it from a hook and watch your family smile..
You will need: A large round party balloon, natural jute twine, white craft glue mixed with a little water, a bowl, a small woven basket, a small plush Santa figure, faux berries and pine sprigs.
How to make it: 1. Blow up the balloon and soak the twine in the glue mix. 2. Wrap the wet twine around the balloon in every direction, leaving gaps, and let it dry for a full day. 3. Pop the balloon, pull it out, then tie on the basket with four twine strands and add Santa and the trim.
Gold String Balloon With LED Fairy Lights
Swap plain twine for gold metallic string and you get a balloon that shines all evening. Once the string globe is dry, slip a strand of battery LED fairy lights inside through one of the gaps. The light peeks out through the web of string and throws pretty shadows on the wall. Keep the battery pack in the basket so you can reach the switch. LED lights stay cool, so they are the safe choice for anything made with string and glue. Would you hang yours by a bookshelf or right over the tree?
You will need: A round party balloon, gold metallic string or thin gold yarn, white craft glue, a battery LED fairy light strand, a small basket and thin ribbon for hanging.
How to make it: 1. Wrap the balloon in glue soaked gold string and let it dry completely. 2. Pop and remove the balloon, then feed the LED strand inside through a gap. 3. Tie the basket below, hide the battery box inside it and hang the balloon from a ribbon.
Red and White Striped Paper Mache Balloon
If you love a bold, classic look, try paper mache instead of twine. Cover a balloon in strips of newspaper dipped in flour paste or glue, let it dry, then paint wide red and white stripes from top to bottom. It looks like a candy cane took to the sky as a Christmas hot air balloon. Leave the balloon inside this time, since the paper shell is strong on its own once it is dry. A small wicker basket with a pine sprig finishes it off. Painter’s tape helps keep the stripes neat. Will you go red and white or try green and gold?
You will need: A party balloon, newspaper strips, flour paste or white glue mixed with water, white and red acrylic paint, painter’s tape, brushes and a small wicker basket.
How to make it: 1. Cover the balloon in three layers of pasted paper strips and let it dry overnight. 2. Paint it white, then mask off wide stripes with tape and paint every other one red. 3. Glue a small loop on top for hanging and tie the basket below with twine.
Mini Christmas Hot Air Balloon Ornaments From Plastic Eggs
Those leftover plastic eggs from spring make perfect mini balloons for the tree. Snap one closed, paint it in festive colors and hang a tiny basket below. A bottle cap, a mini muffin liner or a little circle of woven ribbon all work as the basket. Make a whole flock in red, green, gold and white, and your tree looks like it is hosting a balloon festival. Kids can paint the eggs while a grown up handles any hot glue. How many little balloons will you fit on your tree?
You will need: Plastic eggs, acrylic paint, brushes, thin string or embroidery floss, bottle caps or mini muffin liners, a hot glue gun (adult help) and ornament hooks.
How to make it: 1. Paint the eggs and let them dry. 2. Have an adult hot glue four short strings around the middle of each egg and attach the little basket below. 3. Glue a loop of string on top and hang them on the tree.
Burlap and Berry Balloon Centerpiece
This one is made to sit, not hang, so this Christmas hot air balloon works beautifully as a farmhouse table centerpiece. Cover a paper mache or foam ball in strips of burlap, then wrap a band of red berries and pine around the middle. Set it on four wooden skewers pushed into a basket full of pine cones, so the globe seems to float above it. It is tall enough to make a statement but light enough to move when the food comes out. Add a plaid runner and the whole table feels like a cabin in the woods. Where would you put yours?
You will need: A foam ball or dry paper mache globe, burlap, white craft glue, faux berries, pine sprigs, four wooden skewers, a small basket and pine cones.
How to make it: 1. Glue burlap strips over the ball until it is fully covered. 2. Wrap berries and pine around the middle and glue them in place. 3. Fill the basket with pine cones, push in the skewers and press the globe gently on top.
Snowman Pilot in a White Yarn Balloon
Give Santa the day off and let a snowman fly the balloon. Wrap your balloon in fluffy white yarn instead of twine for a soft, snowy look that fits right into a white or Scandinavian style room. The pilot is a small felt snowman with a red scarf, which you can sew in an evening or make from two pom poms stacked together. Hang it near a window so the white yarn catches the daylight. This is a sweet Christmas hot air balloon for anyone who likes calm, wintry decor. What would you name your snowman pilot?
You will need: A party balloon, white yarn, white craft glue, a small woven basket, white felt or two white pom poms, a scrap of red felt and black and orange felt bits for the face.
How to make it: 1. Wrap the balloon in glue soaked yarn, let it dry and remove the balloon. 2. Make the snowman from felt or pom poms and add a red felt scarf. 3. Tie the basket under the globe and seat the snowman inside.
Gingerbread Christmas Hot Air Balloon
Bakers will love this one. Paint a paper mache balloon a warm cookie brown, then add white puffy paint swirls so it looks like a frosted gingerbread treat. Glue little felt gingerbread cookies, peppermints and gumdrops around the sides, and let a felt gingerbread man ride in the basket. It looks good enough to eat, but it is only for looking. Put it on a kitchen shelf next to your mixing bowls and it will make everyone smile while the real cookies bake. Which felt treat will you add first?
You will need: A dry paper mache balloon, brown acrylic paint, white puffy paint, brown, red, white and green felt, scissors, a hot glue gun (adult help) and a small basket.
How to make it: 1. Paint the globe brown and let it dry. 2. Draw icing swirls with white puffy paint. 3. Cut felt cookies and candies, have an adult hot glue them on, then hang the basket with a felt gingerbread man inside.
Vintage Map Paper Balloon
Do you have old road maps or a worn atlas in a drawer? Tear them into small pieces and use them to cover a paper mache balloon. The mix of blue seas, green land and tiny place names makes a Christmas hot air balloon that tells a story. A thin gold ribbon around the middle adds a touch of shine. Hang it over a desk, a reading corner or above a globe for someone who loves to travel. You can even use a map of your own town or the place where your family comes from. Which map would you pick?
You will need: A dry paper mache balloon, old maps or atlas pages, decoupage glue or white glue mixed with water, a foam brush, thin gold ribbon and a small wicker basket.
How to make it: 1. Tear the maps into pieces about two inches wide. 2. Brush glue on the balloon, lay the pieces on, then brush another coat over the top. 3. Let it dry, glue on the gold ribbon and tie the basket below.
Clear Ornament Mini Balloon
Clear fillable ornaments are cheap at any craft store, and they make the cutest little balloons. Fill one with tiny red and gold baubles and a pinch of faux snow, then hang a small twine basket below on four strings. The filling shows through the clear shell, so every one can look a little different. These are lovely gifts too: tuck a tiny note into the basket for a teacher or neighbor. Choose plastic ornaments if you have kids or pets. What colors would you fill yours with?
You will need: Clear plastic fillable ornaments, mini ornaments or beads, faux snow, twine, a hot glue gun (adult help) and small baskets or bottle caps.
How to make it: 1. Open the ornament and fill it about halfway. 2. Close it and have an adult hot glue four twine strings around the middle. 3. Tie the basket to the strings and hang it by the ornament cap.
Christmas Hot Air Balloon for a Nursery
A soft yarn balloon with a teddy bear on board brings a gentle holiday touch to a baby’s room. Use cream, blush or pale blue yarn to match the walls, and pick a teddy that is small and light. Hang it from a sturdy ceiling hook, high up and out of reach of little hands, since small parts and string should never end up inside the crib. It is a sweet decoration you can keep up long after Christmas, because a floating bear fits any season. Which color would suit your nursery best?
You will need: A party balloon, soft cream or pastel yarn, white craft glue, a small woven basket, a small lightweight teddy bear and a ceiling hook.
How to make it: 1. Wrap the balloon in glue soaked yarn and let it dry fully. 2. Pop and remove the balloon, then tie the basket below. 3. Seat the teddy in the basket and hang the balloon high, out of reach of the crib.
Plaid Fabric Covered Balloon
Red and green plaid shouts Christmas, and it turns a plain paper mache globe into a cozy farmhouse piece. Cut long fabric panels shaped like orange segments, then glue them on one by one around the balloon. The seams line up just like the panels on a real hot air balloon. Jute ropes and a wicker basket finish the rustic look. Hang it against a white wall or near a wreath so the plaid really pops. Old flannel shirts work well if you do not want to buy new fabric. Would you go red plaid or green?
You will need: A dry paper mache balloon, red and green plaid fabric or old flannel, sharp scissors, fabric glue or decoupage glue, jute rope and a small wicker basket.
How to make it: 1. Cut eight long panels that are wide in the middle and pointed at the ends. 2. Glue them on around the balloon, slightly overlapping the edges. 3. Let it dry, then tie on the jute ropes and basket.
Christmas Hot Air Balloon Trio Over the Table
One balloon is sweet, but three hanging together look like a real balloon festival. Make them in three sizes by blowing up your balloons to different sizes before you wrap them. Hang them at different heights above the dining table, so the smallest one is highest and they seem to be drifting away. Keep them high enough that nobody bumps their head and they do not block the view across the table. It is a showstopper for a holiday dinner. If you enjoy this kind of project, our balloon crafts gallery has more ideas built on a simple party balloon. Ready to fill the sky above your table?
You will need: Three party balloons, jute twine, white craft glue, three small baskets, clear fishing line and ceiling hooks.
How to make it: 1. Make three twine globes in small, medium and large sizes. 2. Tie a basket under each one. 3. Hang them from ceiling hooks with fishing line at three different heights.
Paper Lantern and Paper Cup Balloon for Kids
Little ones can make their own Christmas hot air balloon with no glue soaking at all. A round paper lantern becomes the balloon and a paper cup becomes the basket. Kids cut red and green paper stripes and glue them on, then a grown up helps tie the cup on with yarn. It takes about half an hour, and every balloon comes out different. Use only a battery LED light if you want it to glow, never a real flame. Hang them in a bedroom or a classroom window. How many will your kids want to make?
You will need: Small round paper lanterns, paper cups, red and green paper, child safe scissors, a glue stick, yarn and a hole punch.
How to make it: 1. Glue paper stripes onto the lantern. 2. Punch four holes around the top of the paper cup and tie a piece of yarn through each. 3. Tie the yarn ends to the lantern frame so the cup hangs below.
Glowing Window Display With Faux Snow
End with a display the whole street can enjoy. Set a large twine balloon with battery LED lights inside in your front window, above a bed of faux snow and a few small bottle brush trees. At night the globe glows warmly through the glass. It is a big take on the Santa balloon shared by Thuong Hoai DIY and many other creators this fall, and it is a lovely finale for your Christmas hot air balloon collection. Put the lights on a timer so they turn off at bedtime. Which window in your home gets the most smiles?
You will need: A large twine globe, a battery LED fairy light strand with a timer, a small basket, a small plush Santa, faux snow and mini bottle brush trees.
How to make it: 1. Make an extra large twine globe with a big party balloon and let it dry. 2. Slide the LED strand inside and set the timer. 3. Arrange the faux snow and trees on the sill and hang or prop the balloon above them.
